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The Status of Multiculturalism in Pakistan

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The Status of Multiculturalism in Pakistan Journal of Global Peace and Security Studies Vol. 1, No. 1, 2020 The status of multiculturalism in Pakistan Author: Jamal Shah ABSTRACT Modern states are plagued with the issues of diversity which require a political solution. Though there cannot be a universal solution fitting every state, every state strives for a contextual solution to face diversity. Pakistan, being dominantly a Muslim state, has cultural, linguistic, ethnic and religious minorities none of which is in the position to demand self-government but accommodation and recognition by the dominant group. The blasphemy law and high degree of Islamization have aggravated the position of minorities which require modification. Muslim- Minority relations are also affected by international events. The present study is an attempt to highlight the status of multiculturalism and issues of minorities by projecting the political and constitutional structure of Pakistan with an emphasis on the blasphemy law. It will show the history and expression of ethnicity and the complaints of the religious minorities. In the end, it will dig out some recommendations to provide a favorable environment for minorities in Pakistan. Key Words: Multiculturalism, Pakistan, Ethnicity, Blasphemy law, Ulema. Associate Professor of Political Science, Government Post Graduate College, Mardan 15 Journal of Global Peace and Security Studies Vol. 1, No. 1, 2020 Introduction Pakistan got independence on August 14, 1947, and was territorially divided into two parts, separated by about 1,000 miles of India. One condition that facilitates unifying a new nation, namely territorial contiguity was absent. It was composed of five provinces; Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (former NWFP), Sindh, Punjab, Baluchistan, and East Bengal and Federally Administered Tribal Area (FATA). Urdu became the national language of Pakistan, chosen to facilitate inter-provincial communication between the country's diverse linguistic populations. Although only about 7.5% of Pakistanis speak it as their first language, it is spoken as a second and often third language by nearly all Pakistanis. English became the official language of Pakistan. It is widely used within the government. Nearly all schools, colleges and universities use English as the medium of instruction. Amongst the more educated social circles of Pakistan, English is seen as the language of upward mobility and its use is becoming more prevalent in upper social circles often spoken alongside native Pakistani languages. Around 93 % of the population of Pakistan is Muslims out of which 22% are Shia and 78% are Sunni. There are religious minorities dominant among which are Hindu, Christians, Ahmadiyya, Kalash, Parsis Sikh, and Jews. So fa,r Pakistan has got three constitutions (1956, 1962 and 1973) all of them have shades of Islam. The constitution of 1973 is more Islamic oriented. The name of the state is the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and Islam has been declared as the state religion (Article 2). The president (Article 41/2) and the prime minister (article 91/3) must be Muslims. Specific provisions have also been given for the protection of minorities. Ethnic Punjabis make the majority of Pakistan’s population. They are well represented in political, bureaucratic, and military establishments. For Punjabis, ethnicity is not as much a matter of public discourse as it is for others. Punjabi is largely a spoken language, while Urdu rules as the written medium. Pakhtuns, Balochs, Sindhis, and lately Muhajirs are relatively more conscious of their ethnicity as minority communities. They demand a fair share of political authority and economic development as well as the preservation of their cultural and linguistic heritage. In the beginning, the provinces, particularly East Pakistan, demanded recognition of their cultural and linguistic distinctions and protection of their economic interests while refugees coming from India asserted their claim to citizenship based on Islamic bonds. The raising of all these voices alarmed the ruling 16 Journal of Global Peace and Security Studies Vol. 1, No. 1, 2020 clique, driving it to perceive dissents as a threat to national unity. Jinnah’s saying “Unity, Faith and Discipline” became its rallying cry for demanding conformity. National unity was often defined as homogenization. It was seldom conceived as unity built on diversity. The question of the basis of Pakistan's nationhood resurfaced in the process of constitution-making. The ulema (religious scholars) pressed for what Ishtiaq Ahmed calls “the sacred state excluding human will” (Ahmad, 1987: 87). Sayyid Abul-A’la Maudoodi, the leader of Jamaat-e-Islami, for example, maintained: “The Shariah … prescribes directives for the regulation of our individual as well as collective life … (touching) such varied subjects as religious rituals, personal character, morals, habits, family relations … laws of war and peace” (Ahmad, 1987: 95). The position of the ulema was self-serving and fundamentalist in conception. On the other hand, the intelligentsia wanted to give a liberal interpretation to the principles of Islam and was not prepared to give such wide powers over their personal life to the ulema. Yet any discourse about Islam was too sacred to be rejected altogether. There were more democratic versions of the Islamic order proposed during the constitutional debates, with wider space for individual freedom and choices of civic life. Ishtiaq Ahmed calls them, “The sacred state admitting human will” (Ahmad, 1987: 121). The Objectives Resolution passed by the Constituent Assembly on 12th of March 1949, as a statement of constitutional principles, sought to combine modern liberal ideas such as democracy, freedom, equality, tolerance, and social justice with the desire of Muslims "to order their lives in the individual and collective spheres in accord with … teachings and requirements… Quran and Sunnah" (Constituent Assembly, 1949:1–2). The Objectives Resolution represented a compromise between the Islamic promises of Pakistan and democratic liberal notions of individual freedom and social justice. Yet, as the subsequent history of Pakistan shows, it did not resolve the “identity crisis” of Pakistan. A nondenominational liberal- democratic state based on the Muslim majority’s moral order was another option feebly in play for the national identity of Pakistan. Muhammad Ali Jinnah (the founder of Pakistan), in his inaugural speech to the newly formed Constituent Assembly of Pakistan on August 11, 1947, laid out such an ideal as the unifying principle of the state. He proclaimed: “every one of you…is first and last a citizen of the state with equal rights…you may belong to any religion or caste or creed that has nothing to do with the business of the state…” This speech seemed to change the whole rationale of Pakistan (Ahmad, 1987: 141). The secularists have often relied on this speech in support of their vision of Pakistan, although their voices have been steadily marginalized. 17 Journal of Global Peace and Security Studies Vol. 1, No. 1, 2020 However, in 1971 the eastern wing of Pakistan (known as East Pakistan) separated from the western wing and became Bangladesh. This event left the rest of Pakistan with only four provinces and FATA, which are contagious but has a multicultural status. Present Pakistan is a country of pluralist traditions. Each of its provinces has a distinct mix of languages and ethnic stocks. There are numerous dialects, changing almost every hundred miles (Qadeer, 2006: 40). Independence (August 14, 1947) brought refugees from India who were ethnically and linguistically different from the original residents of the receiving regions. This process further extended the diversity of population and patterns of living, particularly in Sindh and Punjab. It also laid bases for the ethnic strife in the competition for jobs, political power, and state patronage. Immigrants to Karachi transformed it from a Sindhi port city to an Urdu-speaking metropolis, triggering feelings of distrust between Sindhis and Muhajirs (the Urdu-speaking refugees from India). Sindh's ethnic and linguistic split has aligned along the urban-rural divide. Muhajirs have spread out in cities and Sindhis continue to dominate in villages and towns. Baluchistan is a multicultural province divided into regions dominated by Balochs, Barohis, Pakhtuns, Jats, and small clusters of other ethnic minorities. Its dominant language is Baluchi which is spoken as the first language by about 3.5% of Pakistanis. In the 1980s, the province received a large number of Afghan refugees, tilting the demographic and social balance toward Pakhtun in northern and central districts. Punjab's diversity of dialects, Saraiki and Pothohari contrasting with the heartland Punjabi, was striking at the time of independence. Since then, the increased mobility of the population and the absorption of refugees from India have stimulated homogenizing tendencies both linguistically and ethnically. The dominant language of Punjab is Punjabi which is spoken as a first language by more than 44% of Pakistanis. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (former NWFP), although symbolically a Pakhtun region, is also a province of many ethnicities and languages, for example, Hindku-speaking people inhabits the Peshawar Valley and Hazara district, and Saraiki speakers are found in the Derajats. However, the dominant language is Pashto which is spoken as a first language by 15.5% of Pakistanis. Sindh is more diverse than the rest of the provinces composed of the natives Sindhis, a dominant portion of the Hindu minority and the Muhajir from India at the time of independence. The Muhajir is largely concentrated in the urban areas while the native Sindhis are in the rural area. The dominant language is Sindhi which is spoken as a first language by 15.5% of Pakistanis. 18 Journal of Global Peace and Security Studies Vol. 1, No. 1, 2020 The existence of a multiplicity of ideas about Pakistan is not a symptom of its ideological weakness. It is the misguided attempt to silence divergent voices with state authority and political intimidation that has not allowed the ideological contradictions to be resolved and a dynamic consensus to be formed.
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